CIMWI - Channel Islands Marine & Wildlife Institute

9.13.13 Gaviota, CA & 9.17.13 Channel Islands, CA

Meet #116.
He’s a 13-month-old California sea lion that was rescued on August 24, 2013, by
CIMWI (Channel Islands Marine & Wildlife Institute). Weighing only 34 lbs
when found, the resilient little guy gained 21 lbs by the time I got to meet
him for the first time on September 13.

With their
first rescue in June of 2006, CIMWI has (at the time of this story being
photographed) rescued and rehabilitated 416 sick and injured sea lions in
Ventura County, CA, with 116 of those occurring since January of 2013. Working
as part of the Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Program under the
direction of NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service, CIMWI is the only
authorized organization to respond to and rehabilitate pinnipeds (seals and sea
lions) and cetaceans (dolphins, porpoises and whales) for Ventura County.

The
founders, Dr. Sam Dover and Ruth Dover, are a husband and wife team that
dedicates their time and energy to running the program as well as working to
maintain funding and continue growing their operation.

With a
volunteer base of about 40-50 people located around Santa Barbara County and
Ventura County, CIMWI responds immediately to calls regarding injured, stranded
or oddly behaving marine mammals. They’ll usually start by putting up signs
around the reported animal and observe its behavior before determining if a
rescue is needed. It takes anywhere from two to four volunteers to rescue the
animal and bring it back to their facilities in Gaviota, CA to begin the
rehabilitation process.

At the time
of intake, the pickup location, condition, length, weight, sex and age class
are recorded to track their progress. Because of their inability to calculate
the exact birth date, the standard birthday (calculated from the typical time
of birth for a sea lion) is June 15th.

Each animal
is assigned a number instead of given a name, which is just one of many ways to
ensure that the volunteers don’t get attached to the animals during their time
at the facility. When it’s determined that the animal is healthy enough to be
released, a date is set and plans are made to send two volunteers with the
animal on one of the Island Packers to be released.

I was lucky
enough to be given the opportunity to follow #116 on his release, so I headed
up to Ventura County on the morning of September 17th to document
his return to the wild. Island Packers has passenger boats that do daily trips
to the Channel Islands. Anyone can buy a ticket to take a day trip or even stay
longer and camp, so the boat was packed with people as we loaded up. Ready with
a sheet of facts about the particular animal being released, the volunteers
selected to go with the sea lion are happy to answer any questions people ask
as they spot the animal in the kennel on deck.

After the
passengers were dropped off at the island (this particular trip took us to the
island of Santa Cruz), the boat headed back out to release #116 offshore and
away from the people. Just a few miles off the coast, the boat stopped, a gate
was opened and the kennel was moved to the edge before releasing the fuzzy
mammal into the ocean. #116 jumped in without hesitation, swimming several
yards out before turning around to glance back at the boat. I last saw him
happily bobbing up and down in the waves as he leisurely swam away.

[Please
note that the photos shown depict the animal being fed by hand. This was a
special rare occasion in which they did this for me to get some close up photos
of #116 and is not common practice at CIMWI. The animals get very little
personal contact with the volunteers in an effort to preserve their wild
instincts for their release back to their natural environment.]

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Jen Levine [left], who has worked with CIMWI for five years, trains Tanda Schmidt [right] on her first day as a volunteer.

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Tanda inserts a dose of meds into the fish that #116 will be fed.

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Tanda feeds #116 by hand for the camera.

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#116 enjoys a light misting from the hose.

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Tanda looks at the future plans for the CIMWI facility.

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Cleanliness is important in maintaining a healthy environment for the sea lions and volunteers. Tanda sprays off her waders at the end of the work day.

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#116 is ready for his ride to the Channel Islands on one of the Island Packers Cruises boats.

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Larry Martin, CIMWI volunteer [right] and a helping hand load #116 onto the cart to be taken onto the boat.

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Larry wheels #116 to the boat.

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Larry and a crew member with Island Packers Cruises carry #116 onto the boat.

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Larry gives some facts about #116 to the ship's captain.

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Dolphins jumped alongside the boat on our way to the Channel Islands.

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A crewmember gets ready to release #116.

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#116 jumps to freedom.

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I’d like to thank Ruth Dover, who was kind enough to openly accommodate my visit to CIMWI. CIMWI is a phenomenal operation that needs your donations and support. If you’d like to donate or apply to volunteer, you can find more information on their website:

I’d also like to thank Island Packers for allowing me to accompany #116 on his release. If you’re interested in taking a trip to the Channel Islands, you can find more information about the Island Packer trips on their website: